After the historic UFC 217, Ultimate seeks to continue the intense pace of last weekend with an event full of good fights. O UFC Norfolk takes place this Saturday (11) and features in the main fight, a duel between excellent strikers: the former lightweight champion Anthony Pettis seeks to stay close to a new title fight against Dustin poirier, known for his square boxing and heavy hands.
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In addition to the promise of a battle between lightweights, the show will also have six Brazilians in action, with good prospects for national MMA: Júnior Albini, Cezar Mutant, Raphael Assunção, Marlon moraes, Marcel Fortuna and Viviane Sucuri will be in action in several divisions.
Insane fight promise
Even though they are outside the top-5 of the lightweight division, Anthony Pettis e Dustin poirier are on the rise in the UFC. The former category champion returned to his winning ways with a great triumph over Jim Miller, while the ‘Diamante’ comes from a war against another former belt owner, Eddie Alvarez – Poirier was winning the fight, when he was caught by an illegal knee that knocked him out and the duel ended without result.
Therefore, the main struggle of UFC Norfolk, in addition to promising a striking show, with Pettis' refined tae kwon do contrasting with Poirier's sharp boxing and heavy hands, it should define who will take a step forward in the true shark tank that is the under-70 kg division. The winner could be one fight away from fighting for the belt, while the winner will take several steps back in his quest for the title.
Brazilians on the main card
Júnior “Baby” Albini had a dream debut in the UFC: the Brazilian knocked out Timothy Johnson in the first round and received the gift of a fight against a renowned athlete. Andrei Arlovski He is in a bad phase, coming off several consecutive defeats, but he is still one of the most recognized names in the division, and was once the Ultimate champion. A victory over the Belarusian puts “Baby” on another level in the shallow heavyweight division and, in case of victory, the Brazilian can now dream of greater heights.
Raphael Assunção, in turn, is coming off one of the biggest victories of his career, when he beat his compatriot Marlon moraes at UFC 212. But the bantamweight, which has already beaten the current champion TJ Dillashaw, did not receive a better ranked opponent and had to settle for Matthew López. Thus, the obligation to win is on the Brazilian, who cannot even think about losing if he wants to remain in the hunt for the bantamweight belt.
Finally, Cézar Mutante will have the chance to recover from his unexpected defeat to Elias Theodorou against a veteran of the sport. Nate Marquardt was already the Strikeforce champion, but he is in a downward phase and is coming off a defeat to the master of Mutante, Vitor belfort. Even so, the Brazilian middleweight, who had built a streak of three victories before the setback, needs the victory to continue climbing the division.
Brazilians in the preliminaries
The bantamweight Marlon moraes It hasn't been easy since he signed with Ultimate. After debuting with defeat in a balanced duel with Raphael Assunção, “Magic” will now have his second fight in the category against John Dodson, TUF 14 champion in the division and former challenger for the flyweight belt. The duel promises balance, as the two are, perhaps, the fastest in the category, while Marlon has the advantage in jiu-jitsu and hand weight. Whoever wins will take a significant step towards the top-5.
Brazilian Marcel Fortuna debuted in the UFC as a heavyweight and surprised with a great knockout over wrestler Anthony Hamilton. However, upon returning to his original weight division, he was surprised by Jordan Johnson, and defeated by unanimous decision. Before Jake collier, “Mãozinha” needs the victory to stay on track for a place in the top-15 of the under-93 kg division.
Vivi Sucuri, in turn, will face her first big test in Ultimate. After victories over Valerie Letorneau and Jamie Moyle, the Brazilian strawweight will face Tatiana Suárez, known for her refined wrestling and for having won the 23rd season of The Ultimate Fighter. With just four professional fights, Suárez is undefeated in MMA, as is Sucuri, who has 13 wins in 13 fights.
UFC Fight Night Norfolk
Data: 11 / 11 / 2017
Timetable21h30
Location: Norfolk, Virginia, USA
How to watch: Combate Channel
MAIN CARD (from 1pm Brasília time):
Lightweight: Dustin poirier x Anthony Pettis
Welterweight: Matt Brown x Diego Sanchez
Heavyweight: Junior Albini x Andrei Arlovski
Middleweight: Nate Marquardt x Cezar Mutant
Bantamweight: Raphael Assunção xMatthew Lopez
Lightweight: Joe lauzon x Clay guida
PRELIMINARY CARD (from 21:30 pm, Brasília time):
Bantamweight: John Dodson x Marlon moraes
Straw weight: Tatiana Suarez placeholder image x Viviane Sucuri
Lightweight: Sage Northcutt x Michel Quiñones
Straw weight: Angela Hill x Nina ansaroff
Welterweight Weight: Court mcgee x Sean Strickland
Light Heavyweight: Jake collier x Marcel Fortuna
Average weight: Darren stewart x Karl Robertson
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